If you receive an urgent or extremely important email telling you to forward the message to everyone you know or care about or to as many people as possible, chances are more than good that the email is a hoax. Writers of hoaxes (whether a virus or internet hoax) depend on partial knowledge and intelligence of the recipient (you). Getting an “insider” email from a friend of a friend of a friend who has contact with AOL, Bill Gates, FCC, IBM, Miller, Disney, Nokia, or any other well-known company, may allow anyone to consider the validity of the news.
“What do I have to lose by trying this?” “What have I to lose by taking this precaution?”
“Why shouldn’t I tell so-and-so ‘just in case'”Other than causing possible server shutdowns and
unnecessary time & cost to companies by an overabundance of traffic (as is the major problem with the Melissa and Loveletter viruses), an internet panic can develop. The best way to be certain that an email is or is not a hoax, whether it be a virus warning, a chain letter, or a get-rich-quick scheme, is to check listings, at the list below or at the Computer Incident Advisory Capability, ComputerVirus MythsF-Secure, or Symantec.

If you do not find the hoax there, please contact us or your system administrator
(usually: postmaster@or abuse@”whatever follows @ in your email address”).